Don’t look back. Don’t you ever look back…Shy tattoo artist Ash has a troubled past. Years of neglect, drug abuse, and life on the streets have taken their toll, and sometimes it seems the deep, unspoken bond with his lover is the only balm for wounds he doesn’t quite understand.Chicago paramedic Pete is warmth, love, and strength—things Ash never knew he could have, and never even knew he wanted until Pete showed him. But fate is a cruel, cruel mistress, and when nightmares collide with the present, their tentatively built world comes crashing down.Traumatic events in Pete’s work life distance him from home, and he doesn’t realize until it’s too late that Ash has slipped away. Betrayal, secrets, and lies unfold, and when a devastating coincidence takes hold, Pete must fight with all he has to save the love of his life.

Rare

Paramedic Pete Adams lived through the year from hell watching his lover, Ash, fall apart, and the precarious balance between work and home is becoming more strained. His heart is always home, with Ash, but the dark side to his job is weighing him down.Tattoo artist Ash Fagin is recovering from a nervous breakdown triggered by revelations about his traumatic childhood. His battle with mental illness is far from over, but with Pete by his side, he's feeling good again, so good he doesn’t notice something missing until it walks right into his living room.Ash believes he’s had enough coincidence in his life, but when a voice from the past comes looking for him, it takes the devastating injuries of the one he loves most to convince him to let a ghost become the family he never knew he wanted.

Karen's review for Slide:

‘Slide’ is by no means my first Garrett Leigh book and as with previous reads this one has captured my attention from start to finish and I have loved every word of it and since this is a re-release I’ve also loved that I’ve been able to jump into the next book as soon as I was finished with this one and then directly into the last book…right after that but we’ll talk about those books when I get to their review for now lets talk about ‘Slide’.

Ash Fagin is an incredibly talented artist with an incredibly troubled past. Years of neglect and abuse in the foster care system and on the streets have resulted in a history of drug abuse have taken their toll leaving him more than a little troubled but when he looks at Chicago Paramedic Pete, Ash sees everything he’s never known or realized that he wanted and together they begin to build a life that offers both of them love and happiness.

Things seem to be working out for Ash and Pete until the nightmares of Ash’s past meet up with their present and events at work have Pete so distracted that he fails to see what’s happening to the man he loves until circumstances are dire and Pete realizes that even if he can save Ash…he may still be too late to save them.

It’s hard sometimes to explain exactly why one author has a stronger, more deeply felt impact on me than another one who may be just as good but for whatever reason doesn’t seem to make that same connection but without fail Garrett Leigh’s stories carry that connection for me.

I loved Pete and he proved to be exactly what Ash needed, but Ash won my heart in a totally different way. He brought out the momma-bear in me. I wanted to wrap him up in a blanket and feed him milk and cookies, tell him what an amazing, talented and wonderful person he was. For me Ash represents every child that the foster care system and society in general has ever failed…yep, insert tears here.

‘Slide’ isn’t a story that starts at the beginning but more in the middle and as the story progresses things flow backwards and forwards in time and while it seems that this would possibly make for a confusing story what happens is that the reader gets pieces as they become relevant giving clarity to circumstances happening in the present.

I loved that we are given events from both Pete and Ash’s perspective allowing the reader a chance to know both men and see their world through both of their eyes and adding balance to events.

In ‘Slide’ we get to see Ash and Pete go from strangers to roommates to friends to lovers. We see them struggle to keep a fragile new relationship growing and then watch as it grows and becomes stronger withstanding the nightmares that haunt Ash as his past catches up to him.

While I very much enjoyed this story, I can’t say that I liked everything that was said or done by any one character but that’s pretty much how life goes in the real world. None of us say or do things that everyone likes all the time, none of us are the person that everyone likes all the time and maybe that’s part of why I connected so well with this story. This isn’t a story about perfect people doing perfect things all the time. They’re flawed people and sometimes they don’t try to be the best person they can be…sometimes, they’re just trying to get by and survive and maybe that’s not how it should be but like the rest of us these characters aren’t perfect people living in a perfect world. They’re just people trying to get by and survive.

Karen's review for Rare:

‘Rare’ is the continuation of Ash and Pete’s story and with this installment we not only get to see how much Ash has come back from the events of ‘Slide’ but this time around it’s Ash’s turn to step up when Pete is the one in need of the extra love and support and for Ash it’s going to mean more than just being there for Pete. Once again Ash’s past comes knocking on his door only this time Ash’s priority is Pete and dealing with his past needs to take a back seat to what he feels Pete needs from him. So, while his past is still demanding his attention and there’s closure to be had for Ash it’s going to take a backseat to what’s happening in the present.

I know a lot of my friends found this one to be really emotional and it was, but I also felt that there was a positive undertone. Ash and Pete may have their struggles in the face of adversity but ultimately, they hold firm to their love and faith in each other.

Like so may people Ash is his own worst critic and this can be a way to challenge themselves to always do their best and try harder for some people because of his past at times Ash’s lack of self esteem can be debilitating but when Pete needs him the most is when we are shown how truly strong Ash can be.

I loved this role reversal. Seeing not only that Ash has the strength that Pete has always seen in him but that when it comes to the man he loves Ash is truly an equal partner. While there are challenges and conflicts at the end of them all neither man ever looses sight of what they have and how much it means to each of them.

I also loved that while Ash stepped up to be the man he needed to be it never felt easy. He had to dig down deep to find the strength not only to be there for Pete but to deal with the part of his past that came knocking on his door wanting into his life. This was such an integral part of the story and how Ash dealt with things was not only going to impact his life but that of Pete and their friends. While I loved the whole story, this part was, for me, so well handled. There wasn’t a magic solution at hand but a solution that was basically a work in progress throughout the story.

I was frequently left with that feeling of one step forward and two steps back that we all experience when we’re dealing with the bigger issues that can come up in our lives giving this story a very solid feeling of being grounded in reality despite some of the coincidences that at times were a bit much.

Finally, as much as I enjoy Ash and Pete, as a couple, having them interact with their friends and family simply added to their depth as characters and helped to keep that grounded in reality feeling that it had while reading this series.

There’s a lot of change happening throughout this story…things are constantly changing for Ash and Pete as both as a couple and as individuals while they work through life’s challenges, but as with any relationship change will happen. So really, it’s not surprising that Ash and Pete aren’t the only ones experiencing change…the changes happening are with and between Ash, Pete, their friends, family and careers.

‘Rare’ isn’t the end of the journey for these two men and can’t wait to find out what comes next in the third and final installment of Ash and Pete’s story. I have no doubt that it will involve change.

Bonus - Karen's review for Circle (Book #3 in the Roads series)

While Ash and Pete have weathered the storms of the past and neither man has lost sight of how much they love each other but with the beginning of ‘Circle’ there’s a distance between them that leaves both men feeling like there’s a distance that they’re not sure they can breach and it’s going to take the wisdom of some new friends and a trip away from home for Ash and Pete to find their way back home and to each other.

Pete’s not happy and Ash knows it as clearly as he knows that the love they share is still alive and strong but what he can’t see is the cause of Pete’s unhappiness. Pete’s keeping secrets…not because he wants to but because he loves Ash and the last thing he wants to do is to add his darkness to what his lover already carries. But that’s not how Ash feels, he wants the man he loves above all else to be happy…

“Because it haunts me, and you don’t need any more fucking ghosts.”“You carry mine as much as I carry yours. We’re wasting our time, otherwise."

It’s going to take stepping outside of both their comfort zones for these men to find a way back to each other and recapture that magic that they share.

Pete knows that there’s a wall between him and Ash. After all he’s the one who’s erected it but what he’s not prepared for is the fact that Ash is determined to fight for what they have and when push comes to shove Ash is not only willing to step outside of his comfort zone to set them both back on the same path but he’s going to take Pete right along with him.

If I loved the first two books in this series I’m still looking for a word to explain how much I treasured this last step of their journey. ‘Circle’ not only sees Pete and Ash working to find a way back to each other but to themselves as well…especially Pete. He’s been through so much and now it’s time for him to come to terms not just with what’s happened but with some of the things he’s done as a result and it’s time for him to trust that Ash is every bit as strong as Pete has claimed he believes him to be.

While I’m not prepared to go into the details of things that have happened because I’d like to keep this a spoiler free review. I will say that after all that Ash and Pete have been through (and I’m going back to the very beginning of this series with this statement) ‘Circle’ is the ending that they both deserve and have both worked so hard for but it’s one that they’re also going to have to continue to work hard to get. Pete’s secrets were done and kept out of love for those who mattered in his life so truly I loved that Ash saw this just as Pete saw that Ash’s actions were about finding a way to bring them back together.

I loved, loved, loved this series and being able to read it without any breaks in the stories was for me the best way to enjoy it and one that I recommend. Seeing the growth and change that each of these men went through was to say the least an emotional journey and seeing them get the happily ever after that they both needed and deserved was simply the icing on the cake.

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A copy of all three books was graciously provided by ‘Signal Boost Promotions’ in exchange for an honest review.

About the author:Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British writer and book designer, currently working for Dreamspinner Press, Loose Id, Riptide Publishing, and Fox Love Press.Garrett's debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and her polyamorous novel, Misfits was a finalist in the 2016 LAMBDA awards.When not writing, Garrett can generally be found procrastinating on Twitter, cooking up a storm, or sitting on her behind doing as little as possible, all the while shouting at her menagerie of children and animals and attempting to tame her unruly and wonderful FOX.Garrett is also an award winning cover artist, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com, and co-owns the specialist stock sitemoonstockphotography.com with renowned LGBTQA+ photographer Dan Burgess.WebsiteFacebookTwitter